Federal File

Business as Usual

In a position becoming increasingly familiar for many close friends
of President Clinton, Secretary of Education Richard W. Riley found
himself called upon to defend his boss last week against charges of
sexual impropriety and alleged efforts to conceal the truth about
it.

But at the Department of Education, it was business as usual.

Mr. Riley declined to discuss the latest and potentially most damaging
allegations against Mr. Clinton with reporters last week.

Instead, he said he planned to follow Mr. Clinton's requests to
focus entirely on the education initiatives announced in the State of
the Union Address.

In a press conference held shortly before the annual address, Mr.
Riley said he and other Cabinet members had had a "very substantive"
meeting with Mr. Clinton and Vice President Al Gore on Jan. 23 that
focused in part on the school proposals.

Following that meeting, Mr. Riley appeared before the TV cameras
with Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright and other Cabinet members
in a show of support for the president.

Many observers speculate that Mr. Clinton will be sidetracked--at
least temporarily--from the education agenda and other initiatives he
had hoped would be the focus of media attention following the State of
the Union speech.

Instead, news reports focused on the chief executive's efforts to
deal with the accusations involving former White House intern Monica
Lewinsky that emerged from the ongoing sexual-harassment case filed by
Paula Corbin Jones.

Asked by reporters whether the Education Department's basketful of
school initiatives would be overshadowed by the new allegations,
Secretary Riley did not mention Ms. Lewinsky's reported claims.

"The president told us that what is best for this country was for us
to focus on our job, and that's what he's going to do," Mr. Riley
said.

"I do know that the president is very much focused on what he thinks
the country should be looking at."

Mr. Clinton "is more interested in the classroom than he is in the
courtroom," Mr. Riley added.